Saxophone Invention
Dinant is on the banks of Meuse which is in Belgium. Invasions and wars have been an integral part of the town. But, amongst the pain and the misery the people of Dinant are reminded of a musical instrument that got them joy in moments of bitter history.
There are a few products that are famous for the town of Dinant. Divavderia; a hammered plate which was made of yellow copper and brought the town great wealth is just one of them. The couques de Dinant is a hard ginger bread and is made out of barley flour and honey. The third is a brass instrument.
November 6th, 1814 was the day Antonine Joseph was pronounced son to Charles Joseph Sax. He was called Adolphe in the later years and had 11 siblings. His life and history of music changed when King William I of Lowlands appointed Adolphe to the music instrument manufacturer. He was commissioned to make instruments for the band which will be used by the army of his new kingdom.
From his father, Adolphe had developed an idea about structure shape and nature of brass and woodwind instruments and as early as six years old he could successfully drill a clarinet’s body. His father himself had modified the design of a horn tremendously. Thus, his son found it just natural.
Even though it was invented long back, the bass clarinet design was patented only when Adolphe Sax was twenty. He had left schooling and his diverted energy brought in money for the family.
In the year 1841, Adolphe Sax shifted to the beautiful city of Paris. His work on instruments continued and they were exhibited three years later. Defeating all his competitors, his examples drew in many people who were interested to buy and know more. The saxhorn as it was famously called led to the invention of the flugelhorn, which is used in concert bands and orchestras. The modern day euphonium too has its roots in the saxhorn.
Another of his inventions was the family of saxotromba. Even though they did not have a glorious fate as the saxhorn, these instruments were used for a few years after their creation in 1845. The structure of these instruments was that of a valved bass which was narrower bore as compared to a saxhorn.
The saxhorn crossed borders and oceans because of its sheer excellence. Even today the structure remains close to its original form. The brass band movement was a result of Adolphe Sax’s advances with the Saxhorn.
Next up was the clarinette-bourdon around the 1840s. This was the unpolished version of the contrabass clarinet. It was only after the clarinette-bourdon, that Sax invented the saxophone which he is so famously known for. It was patented in 1846 and was used extensively in orchestras and concert bands. His job as a teacher at the Paris Conservatoire was secured because of his range of saxophones which included the sopranino and the subcontrabass. These designs were on black and white but they never actually materialized to be a part of the orchestra instruments.
Even after his invention and spread of the Saxophone, he continued to produce and invent more instruments. Success has its price and Sax had to literally pay it as his rivals brought him to bankruptcy twice. Once in 1856 and then in 1873, they attacked his legitimacy of his patents.
Through 1853 to 1858, he suffered and eventually recovered from lip cancer and finally died in 1894 in Paris.
- Nikita Gupta
Tags: adlophe sax, sax, saxophones
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